


All The Pretty Girls

by ExtraordinarilyAverage



Category: Star vs. The Forces Of Evil
Genre: Cute, F/M, Fluff, Party, Romance, Romantic Comedy, Romantic Friendship, Teenage Drama, marco diaz - Freeform, star butterfly - Freeform, starco
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-28
Updated: 2015-08-09
Packaged: 2018-04-11 18:02:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 8,033
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4446314
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ExtraordinarilyAverage/pseuds/ExtraordinarilyAverage
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Star and Marco get invited to Jackie Lynn Thomas’ end of the school year party, the absolute raddest event of the year. Marco is determined to get in some one-on-one conversation time with Jackie, but when none of the girls at the party seem to live up to his expectations, he realizes who has set his standards so high. Inspired by “All the Pretty Girls” by Fun.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Cause I've been waiting for...

**Author's Note:**

> I wanted to write something cute and starco but the first couple chapters are pretty light and fluffy. I'll add a new chapter every couple days because this is entirely finished! At the end of it all, though, I may do a continuation. Depends on if it's well received! Enjoy!

“Marcooo Diaz, are you ready for the _greatest night of your life?_ ”

“You bet I am, Star Butterfly! Are _you_ ready for the greatest night of _your_ life?”

“You bet your booty I am,” Star responded cheerfully. The Diaz household was filled with a palpable sense of tension and excitement emanating from the two young teens buzzing around the second floor, preparing for Jackie Lynn Thomas’ end-of-the-school-year party, advertised on the flier as “the absolute raddest party” ever.

The hype actually started about two weeks prior, the day Jackie began passing out fliers as invitations. Each flier accounted for the recipient as well as a plus one, so almost the entire school was attending, but receiving a flier from Jackie was a lot like a VIP pass and set up your cool-kid rep for the rest of the summer.

“So, basically, I am dying to get a flier,” Marco finished explaining to Star as they walked into school on the fated day that Jackie would be passing out the fliers, “If I can get into that party, then I may actually get a chance to talk to her!”

“That sounds great, Marco! I love parties,” Star replied. She’d never really celebrated anything like the end of a school year, and she was endlessly fascinated by the bond that was formed between earth students through mutual hatred of school.

“Are you guys talking about Jackie’s party?” Ferguson asked, walking up to the pair with Alfonzo.

“Yup! And this year I’m totally gonna get invited,” Marco boasted.

“How do you know that, Marco?” Alfonzo asked, “None of us have been invited before!”

“Well…” Marco began, but was cut off by the merciful warning bell for homeroom. He didn’t want to say that the reason he thought he’d get invited was that Jackie thought Star was cool, and Star was his best friend. There was a partial truth to this, but it did make him feel sort of like he was using Star for her popularity – but then he’d think about spending an evening dancing with Jackie and the guilt was replaced with day-dreamy desire.

As Star and Marco walked into their morning classroom, splitting up with Alfonzo and Ferguson, Star spoke up, “Y’know, Marco, Jackie already told me she was going to invite me. So, even if you don’t get a flier, I’ll totally make you my plus one!”

After hearing this kind offer, Marco’s slight guilt appeared again in the pit of his stomach, weighing him down like a greasy fast-food burger, “You’re really the best, Star.” He’d make it up to her. Take her out for ice cream or something…

As the bell rang again for homeroom to begin, the last few students shuffled into the classroom, including Jackie Lynn Thomas with a handful of fliers.

Marco’s heart skipped a beat and his palms became sweaty as she wove through the maze of desks, dropping a few fliers on kid’s desks with a cool smile.

 _Oh, here she comes! Be cool, Marco, no worries, it’s all good, it’s all –_ , He choked on his thoughts as she neared the corner of the classroom where he and Star sat.

“…and of course one for Star Butterfly,” Jackie handed Star a flier and got an upbeat thank you and a 100 watt smile in response. Then Jackie turned to him.

“Oh, Marco, you should totally come too!” She extended her arm towards him, flier in hand.

His mind was hazy – he could hardly believe it! What he’d always wanted, what he had longed for. He wasn’t a plus one. He was invited!

“Thanks, Jackie,” He managed, coughing after he spoke to cover up a voice crack he could feel coming on. He tried to discreetly wipe his palm on his jeans before taking the flier from her.

Still buzzed from the invitation, he didn’t even notice Ms. Skullnick demanding that everyone take their seats, or her grumbling about finals and how everyone should be studying. If he hadn’t been trained to respond with “here” when called on for roll since grade school, he may not have even responded to that.

It took Star jabbing him in the side once class had begun for him to come back to Earth.

“Marco,” Star whispered, gesturing excitedly to her flier and squealing with glee.

Marco nodded back excitedly, gesturing to his flier with the same amount of glee.

The two were on cloud nine the whole rest of the day, and after a quick chat with Alfonzo and Ferguson they agreed to take them as their plus ones.

Most of the energy from Jackie handing out her invitations died out by the weekend, but Marco rode this high all the way up to the last day of school. As he and Star were leaving the school for their regular weekday walk home, Star realized something. There hadn’t been an attack from Ludo all week – which meant he’d either attack in the next few hours… or…

“Marco,” she spoke up during a lull in his chatter, “I just realized something –,”

“Me too, Star!” He responded, stopping in his tracks and grabbing her shoulders.

“Oh? What’s that?” She asked, genuinely surprised.

“I haven’t thanked you!”

“Thanked me?”

“Yeah! You’re the whole reason Jackie invited me,” His arms dropped to his sides and he shrugged sheepishly, “The only reason she noticed me, I mean, is because I’m friends with you. I wouldn’t be going at all if you had never come around. So… thank you, Star. I never knew that having you around would improve my life so much! And tomorrow is going to be the perfect night!” He pumped his fist in the air victoriously.

“Ah, yeah! Woo hoo!” Star cheered with feigned enthusiasm. She couldn’t bring Ludo up now and ruin his great mood. So, she formulated a plan to deal with Ludo and his minions tonight, before they could ruin anything for Marco.

That evening, Star snuck out to the backyard after dinner, going unnoticed by the Diaz family. She had a purse full of dog treats and checked to make sure of the laser-eyed puppies were napping in the living room, next to the door to the outside.

She pulled out her wand and yawned nonchalantly, “Well goodness gracious, I am just so tired from studying for school finals! I’m so stressed I can barely think straight! I sure hope I don’t Star anything up in my mentally strained state!”

She posed like a damsel in distress, letting her wand hang loosely in her hand. She tried to suppress a grin as she heard one of Ludo’s minions disappear into his portal to report back to Ludo. Finding a soft spot of grass, she decided to make herself comfortable until they attacked.

It took barely ten minutes for a portal to open and for Ludo and his goons to emerge, with adorably stupid looks on their faces.

“Star Butterfly! At last the strain of Earth school has weakened your defenses, and now I am here to – ,” Ludo began, but was immediately cut off by a Narwhal Blast to the face, “Ah! What the heck?”

“Hi guys! Listen, here’s the deal, we’re going to a suuuper important party tomorrow so I decided to wreck your shit today so you can’t ruin our evening!” Star explained, walking over to the back door of the house and resting her hand on the handle.

Ludo laughed as one of his minions helped him up, “Ha! And how do you intend to defeat us alone, without your precious friend-boy?”

“Oh, don’t worry about me… Say, Ludo… are your minions good with dogs?” Star asked coyly.

“Eh? Dogs?”

“Why don’t we find out?” Star threw open the door and scattered the treats from her purse among the minions, “Fetch, puppies!”

“HA. Haha, you’re slipping, Princess! You don’t think that a litter of puppies could possibly – AH!” Ludo shrieked as a laser nearly knocked his hat off, “Oh, laser puppies, of course. Should have seen that coming, honestly.”

The puppies caused the minions to panic, lasers firing haphazardly, and although the beams weren’t strong enough to defeat any of the minions, all Star needed was a decent distraction.

Taking care to shut the door gently as to not disturb the Diaz’s, Star turned to the fray and cleared her throat.

“Tiger Shark Ultramarine Annihilation!” She called out, aiming her wand at the confused group of minions.

“Oh, this one is new,” One of them commented before being knocked in the face by a handful of razor sharp, deep blue striped sharks with the legs of a tiger.

The new powerful spell took no time to level the yard of minions, the laser puppies still stinging the fallen occasionally with their small blasts.

Star was left exhausted after using the difficult spell, but was comforted by a feeling of triumph as she watched Ludo’s minions slink back into the portal.

“I don’t like the new spell…” One of them murmured.

“Do you really like any of the spells? Really? Do you? Because I don’t!” Ludo ranted belligerently, following them all into the portal, cursing lasers and puppies and anything to do with them.

Star fed the puppies and then returned to her room, exhausted. As she fell on her bed she heard a gentle knock at the door, “Star?” a quiet voice asked.

“Wassup, Marco?” She responded, propping herself up to face him as her door swung open.

He laughed nervously, “Whatcha been up to? You look crazy tired.” He walked into the room and sat next to her.

“Oh, nothing much, just tried out a new spell. It’s a doozy!” She twirled her finger in the air to illustrate and then plopped bad onto the bed.

“Hey, Star?”

“Mm?”

“I saw you fighting Ludo and his goons.”

Star sat up, “You did? I was trying to be discrete; I didn’t want to bother you!”

“It’s kinda hard to miss a huge army of minions outside my window.”

Pausing momentarily, Star nodded, “Fair enough.”

Marco looked at her for a moment, and there was something in his gaze that made Star’s stomach tie itself in a knot. She suddenly felt nervous, and anxious, and she couldn’t explain any of it.

“Star, don’t think I didn’t account for Ludo not showing up this whole week. I might have been preoccupied but I’m not stupid,” Star’s gaze shifted away, “I was totally prepared to take time out of the party tomorrow to fight him but… did you lure them here just so I wouldn’t have to do that?”

“Well, yeah,” Star confessed, still averting his gaze, “I know this magic stuff can be fun but I figured everyone, and you especially, could use a night of Earth-teen normalcy.”

Star let out a small cry of surprise as Marco tackled her with a hug, “Thank you, Star! You are the absolute best!”

Stars face was completely flushed, and she was glad her room was dimming with the setting sun so Marco couldn’t see, “Hey, what else are best friends for?”

As he pulled away, he had the biggest, silliest smile on his face, but it made Star’s heart warm to see him so happy.

“God, I’m so excited about tomorrow, I hope I can sleep,” he stated, standing up and stretching.

The ache in her bones reminded Star that she would have no problem sleeping, “I’m not worried about sleeping, I just hope I’m not sore tomorrow!”

“You should take a warm bath, it helps your body recover,” Marco suggested, leaving the room, “Goodnight, Star!”

She gave a small wave, “Night,” for some reason, Marco saying anything about her body made her face uncomfortably warm.


	2. Hesitate, oh I Don't Think Straight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All chapter titles are lines from the song that inspired this fic, "All the Pretty Girls" by fun. This chapter is mostly just fluff, we'll get into the real stuff with the next chapter! Thanks for all of the kudos and hits!

After brushing her teeth and letting herself relax, Star decided that a bath sounded really nice after the rough evening of fighting monsters she had. She started the water and shut the door, using her wand to add lovely fresh scented bubbles and soaps to the warm water. Removing her tarnished dress and stockings she added a few fairly bright candles to the room with a quick spell and lowered herself into the warm, bubbly bath.

Upon being submerged in the warm water, her aching muscles immediately found ease in the bubbly haven, “Oh, Marco was right…”

Given this time to think, Star began to formulate how the events of tomorrow may play out, as any teen before a big social event would. Would Oskar be there? Oh, wouldn’t it be so amazing to dance with him? They could dance all evening, and maybe he’d even ask to see her again. That would make the night like a dream! Funny to think that the most magical evening for her, a magical princess from another dimension, is to dance with a cute boy. It was silly, when she thought about it, but being silly was fun. She settled back into her imaginary world where she and Oskar were dancing… and then the song changed into something more upbeat and he spun her around and when she came back to face him Marco took her hand and – “Marco?” She gasped quietly.

Suddenly she became very aware of the silence in the room since she had just turned the water off. The weight of the silence became unbearable and she grabbed her wand to summon a radio song bird to help her gather her thoughts.

Why would she dance with Marco? Or, no, of course she would dance with Marco, but why was that so special that the moment popped into her head? Augh. For the rest of the bath she attempted to push it from her mind, and when she was done she tied up her hair in a messy bun and emptied the tub so she could rinse off quickly with a light shower.

Once she felt nice and clean she stepped out and groped on the counter to grab her towel, only to discover that she had forgotten it. Shivering, damp, and naked, Star contemplated her options: to trek to her room, where her towel sat with immediate safety, but the longest distance; to sprint to the hall closet, grab a towel, and come back to the bathroom and dry off, which would be quickest option; or to call for Marco and see if he was still awake.

Option 3 gave least opportunity for her to get caught in… the nude.

She opened the door a small crack, “Marco,” she stage whispered.

She could hear him shuffling around in his room, “Marcooo,” she called, slightly louder.

He opened his door, “Star?”

“Marco! I’m in the bathroom!”

He walked over to the door and she stuck her head out, “Uh, Star, why are you talking to me through the door?”

“Don’t freak out, but, I’m kinda naked.” Star said, her face turning red.

Marco’s face lit up, “Oh, uh…”

“Can you bring me a towel?” She gave a sheepish smile.

“Sure thing, Star,” He gave her a half smile as he turned away and he chuckled as he handed her the towel.

“Don’t laugh at me! I’m very tired,” She pouted, closing the door and quickly drying off.

Marco giggled again, “You’re just funny! Was the bath nice?"

“Yeah, actually,” Star wrapped the towel around her body, letting her damp hair fall around her shoulders and she opened the door to see Marco still standing there.

“I’m glad you’re feeling better, Star,” he said.

She let out a weak laugh, “Me too. Think you’ve calmed down enough to sleep?”

He nodded, “Thanks again, Star. For everything.”

“Marco, that’s, like, the third time you’ve thanked me today!” Star pushed his arm gently, the other hand holding her towel in place.

He laughed, “I know, I know! I just can’t stop thinking about everything again and again and it keeps cycling and I always come back to how you made all of it possible and… thank you.”

Star smiled softly at him, a look that wasn’t usually present on her expressive face, “Don’t worry about it, Marco. And whatever happens tomorrow night…”

“…we’ve got each other’s backs,” he finished, smiling back at her, “now go get some rest.”

“I could say the same to you!” She laughed as they made their ways to their bedrooms, “Goodnight!”

“Night, Star!” As soon of he was out of sight, Star became blatantly aware of her rapidly beating heart. She scurried back into her room and jumped into her pajamas, thankful for the warm embrace of her comfortable bed. _Let’s hope tomorrow goes well,_ she thought.


	3. You break and Take all the Words from my Mouth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ha this one ends on a bit of a cliff hanger, sorry! I may post the next chapter later today just because it's sorta unfair to leave people in suspense, haha. Also, I have a drawing of Star's dress, if anyone would like to see? Ugh it's short one. Anyways... enjoy!

Saturday morning seemed to last forever and at the same time, it was over in a flash. Before either of them could really think about, Marco and Star were getting ready to go to Jackie’s party.

“Marcooo Diaz, are you ready for the _greatest night of your life?”_

“You bet I am, Star Butterfly! Are _you_ ready for the greatest night of _your_ life?”

The two were laughing the whole afternoon and buzzing with excitement. Marco was attempting a new hairstyle, but was having trouble mastering the gel that clung to his fingers and refused to spread evenly; meanwhile, Star was adding a subtle amount of makeup to her face, accentuating her long lashes and adding a bit of color to her lips, hoping that she’d be leaving a mark on a cute boy’s face tonight.

Marco sighed in frustration, “Hey, Star, do you know how to work this stuff?” He held out his goopy hands with a helpless look on his face.

Star laughed, “Why are you putting gel in your hair? It looks fine as it is!”

“Really? Are you sure? I feel like I should do something, at least, I mean…” he trailed off.

“Here,” Star said sympathetically, “Wash that crap off your hands. I’ll work on your hair.” She grabbed a comb and sat up on the bathroom counter so she could get a better angle on Marco’s hair as he washed his hands.

He looked relieved, “Thanks, Star!”

“You’re starting to sound like a broken record, Marco, if you thank me one more time I’ll have to blast you!” Star teased as she fixed his hair.

He laughed in response and waited patiently for her to finish.

It didn’t take long, for soon Star announced, “There! You can barely even tell there’s a bunch of goop in your hair.”

“I look great! Tha –,” Star waved her wand threateningly, “ – nk… goodness?” He let out a weak laugh.

“Ah, I’m just messing with you!” She hopped back down to the floor, “I’m gonna go change and then I’ll be almost ready to leave.”

“Change? Why do you need to change, you look fine!” Marco objected, “Isn’t this a casual party?”

Star laughed, “Well, casual or not, it’s a party! Which is a perfect excuse to dress up!” She paused, “Marco, in case you’re wondering, no, you can’t just go in the hoodie.”

“But it’s my _thing_ , Star!”

“Well if you want this _thing_ to work out with Jackie you better step up your game,” Star responded as she danced out of the room.

Marco groaned, “Do I even have anything semi-formal? Damnit…” He trudged to his room and began a search through his closet for anything acceptable.

Star, on the other hand, saw choosing her outfit as a part of the fun! She ended up choosing a newer dress she had made to match the teen-Earth girl style. It was lightweight and fitted at the top but the skirt flared out and swished and moved as she did, which made it perfect for dancing! There was a band of sheer fabric three inches in from the bottom hem of the dress that gave a peek to her legs, which her mother probably would not approve of but that wouldn’t stop Star. It had a strip of small hearts printed down the center and on the bottom band, and the panels of fabric were in varying shades of a warm pink.

She emerged from her room, expecting to see Marco waiting for her, but instead she saw his closed door. Gently knocking, she asked, “Everything okay in there?”

“I think I’ve got it,” he responded, though he didn’t sound too sure, “Will you tell me if this is too formal or not?” The door swung open to reveal Marco in a red button down shirt with a black tie, slacks and matching shoes.

Star sighed, “You look great, but you also look like you’re about to go to a job interview.”

Marco slumped in defeat, “I thought so.”

“Hey, no worries! I can totally work with this. Now put your jeans back on, it isn’t formal enough for you to need slacks.”

“Are you sure?” Marco asked, taking in Star’s attire, “Because you look incredible and if I come in wearing only jeans standing next to you I’m gonna look like a dunce.”

Star waved away his compliment, trying to cover her blushing face, “Oh, please! Girls naturally look better than boys, it can’t be helped! Now change your pants while I go grab my shoes,” She instructed.

Quickly hopping into a pair of black, heeled booties with a pink heart decal on the side, Star returned to Marco’s door, “How ya doing?”

He opened the door, his red shirt now tucked into the waistband of his jeans, “Are you sure this is better?”

“Well not if you do it like that!” Star stepped forward and began untucking his shirt.

“Whoa, whoa,” he put his hands on hers, “I have to stay dressed, Star! My clothes need to stay on my body.”

“Trust me, Marco, I know what I’m doing,” She responded, continuing to untuck his shirt. When it was free from its pantaloon prison, she went to work on unbuttoning it as well, “Are you wearing an undershirt?”

“Uh, yeah?” He responded, still uneasy. At the sight of Star, all made up and in a terribly cute dress, practically undressing him… his heart was pounding and he was desperately trying to control his thoughts.

As soon as he was undone she simply rolled up his sleeves and adjusted his hair a bit, and, “There! Much better.”

“Star, I’m about to thank you, so I want you to do me a favor and not blast me.”

“You’re welcome, Marco.” Star quickly magicked her hair into a pony tail that would stay all evening and the pair were ready to go.

“Ready to go?” She asked.

Marco took a deep breath, “I guess so. Let’s head out.”

“To JACKIE LYNN THOMAS’ PARTYYYY!”


	4. All the Pretty Girls

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, finally, the party! This is were the real fun starts...

The fliers said that the party began as 7, so Star and Marco left the Diaz household at 6:45 and met up with Alfonzo and Ferguson on their way. In the groups excitement, though, none of them realized that they were walking unnecessarily fast – and arrived in front of Jackie’s house at 6:55.

Marco checked his the time on his phone, noticing how few people were there, “Oh no! Guys wait!”

Everyone stopped, “What’s up, Marco?” Alfonzo asked.

“It’s 6:55!” He explained, a panicked look on his face.

“Yes… that’s correct,” Ferguson nodded, “And this is a problem, why?”

“Because, if we’re early we’re going to look like total squares!” Marco responded in exasperation.

Alfonzo and Ferguson laughed off Marco’s anxiety, “Haha, dude, nobody actually cares about that kind of thing!”

“Yeah, so what if we’re five minutes early?”

“No, guys,” Star piped up from where she was contemplating the dilemma, “Marco is right. We need to kill ten minutes before we walk into that house.”

So they found a spot out of sight of the house and chatted until the sun had begun to set and the first stars were appearing on the far horizon. Music began to drift from Jackie’s home over to where they sat.

“I think that’s our cue!” Star jumped up, “Let’s go show these people how to really party!”

Cheering and practically vibrating with excitement, they made their way to Jackie’s house.

Star knocked on the door, and Jackie answered, “Hey guys! The party’s just getting started, come on in,” she waved them into the house and Marco gave a nervous laugh.

Jackie was in a nice pair of light skinny jeans and she was wearing a tight, cut off t-shirt from a band that Marco didn’t know and her midriff was barely visible, making Marcos heart pound.

Alfonzo and Ferguson immediately disappeared into the group of already dancing teens on the patio. There were handfuls of people inside drinking punch and chatting, so Star began to float from group to group, greeted excitedly by everyone. This left Marco alone, for just a moment, with Jackie.

He cleared his throat, “Hey, Jackie, thanks for inviting me. And, uh, you look… really nice tonight.”

Pausing for a moment, she then smiled, “No problem, man! I knew Star would have more fun if her boyfriend was here, so it’s not like I could just invite one of you, that’s not cool.”

“B-boyfriend? I’m not… Star and I aren’t dating! We’re just close friends,” Marco explained frantically. He and Star? What made Jackie think that?

She seemed genuinely surprised, “Oh, really? I don’t know, you guys just spend a lot of time together. Sorry for assuming. I should’ve known better, assuming just makes an ass out of you and me, right?”

They shared a quick laugh, but she soon dismissed herself to let in a few more guests. Marco sighed, watching her walk away, _oh, man, she’s so cool…_

“Marco!” He heard Star call to him, “You did it! You talked to her without sweating a whole bunch or barfing or anything!”

“Something about the party atmosphere just gives a guy a confidence boost, I guess,” He boasted, standing up a little straighter, “See anybody cool while you were conversation hopping?”

Star blushed, “Well, I did hear that… well, uh, Oskar is here, and he’s outside dancing, and…” She chewed nervously on the end of her wand.

“What are you waiting for?” Marco asked, “Go dance with him, princess!”

“As long as you promise to dance with Jackie!” She called back, making her way to the sliding glass door through which the throng of dancing teens could be seen.

“Sure thing!” He called back.

Once outside, a loud pop song immediately assaulted Star’s ears, and it took her a moment to adjust to the booming bass. She recognized the repetitive lyrics and easy to follow rhythms, and began to dance her way into the crowd, looking for Oskar.

She danced around for a few songs but to no avail. She decided to make her way back to the refreshments inside. The punch was on the bar in the kitchen and she poured herself a generous glass. It had a sharp and strange flavor to it, but it was still fruity enough to be enjoyable so she quickly finished the glass. And maybe three more immediately following.

Marco, meanwhile, was attempting to mingle as Star had earlier since Jackie was busy with guests, but to limited success. At first he was excited as girls talked to him, but he repeatedly found himself getting bored with them. It’s not as if they weren’t pretty or nice, they were just missing something that he couldn’t put his finger on.

There were a number of ladies he’d never even met before, probably from other schools, which continued to approach him.

The first groups of girls that approached him were a giggling mess, and Marco forgot their names immediately after they introduced themselves. One of them, a girl with pin-straight black hair and uncomfortable looking shoes asked him to dance, a proposition that he didn't have time to confirm or deny before she'd grabbed him and pulled him into the center of the living room, where the furniture had been pushed aside to allow more room for dancing.

He did his best to pay attention to her, but his conversational skills were not as his best and she seemed just as distracted as he was. Her eyes kept drifting to another guy, a well-built young man in a clean polo and pants that he probably paid too much money for. It was easy enough to tell that Marco's dance partner was just using him to get someone else's attention.

"Hey, what's your name again?" He asked over the music.

"Kim!" She responded quickly, still distracted.

"Listen, Kim, if you want to dance with that guy so bad," he took her hand and pulled her in, "just  _ask_ him!"

With that he spun her out of his arms, in the pretty boy's direction. Marco didn't stick around to see how it went though, at the moment he was more concerned with finding a friendly face, rather than another girl with poorly put-it hair extensions or another guy whose breath smelled like cheap beer.

Ferguson and Alfonso were now attempting to romance the group of girls that Marco had just escaped from, and he knew that if he went back over to them he'd get wrapped up in the whole cycle again. He did, though, manage to pick up a bit of their conversation:

"...yeah, your friend Marco is cute, but he keeps bringing up the same girl over and over again!" One of the girls was saying, "It was so weird - he said he was single but damn, he must be crazy about her. What was her name again?"

Marco was slightly hurt - he couldn't recall bringing Jackie up in that conversation once!

"Probably Jackie," Ferguson said, "Marco's had a crush on her for  _years_!"

Well, Ferguson is going to die young.

"No, no, it wasn't Jackie..." One of the girls piped up, to Marco's surprise, "It was a weird name, like a hipster thing or something?"

"Yeah!" Another girl agreed, "I think it was Star?"

"Star Butterfly?" Alfonzo and Ferguson replied in unison.

The girls assented, saying that Marco simply wouldn't shut up about this girl, and even if they changed the subject somehow he could relate it back to her.

Marco was in shock. There's no way he talked about Star that much! Or, well, maybe. He lives with her though, they do practically everything together, it's completely reasonable that he would talk about her a lot. Right?

“Hey, what’s your name?” he heard a voice behind him.

“Uh, Marco,” He responded, only half paying attention.

“Oh wow, I love Italian guys! I'm - uh, hello? Are you even listening”

He shook his head, “I’m not Italian.”

She scoffed, “Who shat in your cannoli?” She sauntered away, which he was silently thankful for.

He pushed his way through the growing crowd indoors, scanning for Jackie, trying to push Star from his mind. He saw her walking upstairs and began to make his way through the crowd over to her.

When he reached the top of the stairs, he saw her breaking up a pair of people making out in the bathroom and sending them back downstairs.

“Uh, hey, Jackie,” He greeted, feeling his palms begin to sweat as she turned to look at him.

“Oh, hey, Marco. Having fun?” She asked, although her question seemed half-hearted, and she looked like there was something weighing on her mind.

“Totally!" He lied, "But, uh, you don’t really look like you’re having fun,” He didn't want to pry, but he was genuinely curious as to what was going on in her head.

She let out an unconvincing laugh, “Am I that obvious? I hate to ruin the mood!”

“Well, it’s your party, if anyone is having fun it should be you.”

She smiled at him, resting one arm on the railing that overlooked the first floor, “That’s sweet, Marco.”

_This is your chance, Marco! You have her attention, now just tell her!_ “Uh, Jackie, since we kind of have a moment to talk, there’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you.”

“What’s that?”

“I’ve, um… I always… I mean, like, I – I sort of really like you.” He stuttered out. _That’s it! You did it. No matter what she says now, at least you can say you told her._

Her eyes widened for a moment, and then her look softened, “Oh, Marco… I’m so sorry.”

Marco heard a shattering sound and in that moment he could have sworn that it was the sound of his heart breaking. Then he looked over the balcony and he realized someone had just dropped a plate, but the ache in his chest was spreading and he felt as though he may collapse.

“I get it, I get it, I’m not really cool enough for you, I guess,” He rushed out his words, trying to keep the pain from being audible, “I’ll, uh, leave you to it, then.”

Marco turned to go, but before he could take a full step, Jackie stopped him, “Marco, wait. It’s not like that at all. I do think you’re cool and part of the reason I invited you is that I think you’re a nice guy, but that's not why I don't return your feelings…”

His pain was momentarily replaced with confusion, he asked, “Do you have a boyfriend or something?”

“No,” she shook her head, “I… I don’t even like guys, Marco.”

Marco stared at her blankly.

“Marco, I’m, like, gay as hell.”

His expression didn’t change.

“Uh… Marco?”

“That… kind of makes sense,” he finally said.

“Please don’t tell anyone. Only my family knows and they’re supportive and everything but I’m so not ready to tell anyone else. You’re the first person in our school that I’ve told.” She was clearly nervous.

Although Marco’s heart still hurt, he felt more comfortable knowing that this was the reason Jackie didn’t feel the same way, as opposed to her thinking he was just some huge loser. His lingering feelings of affection towards her still prompted him to want to make her happy.

“Jackie, you’re secret is safe with me. Sorry for crushing on you, that must have been awkward.”

“Hey, I’m just glad you didn’t freak out on me! All the other guys who've ever confessed to me were total asshats,” She laughed.

Marco laughed along, “Well, I’m gonna go find Star and see how she’s doing looking for Oscar.” He cursed himself silently fro bringing up Star again.

“Cool. See you around, Marco.”

“See ya,” Marco turned to go, but paused at the top of the stairs, “Oh, and Jackie?” She looked up, “If you need a wing man, just let me know. There's a lot of cute girls here tonight!”

She laughed again, visibly relaxing, “Thanks, Marco!”

Marco descended the stairs feeling disappointed that he was still single and yet fulfilled in that he made a new friend. He stopped a few steps up, scanning the crowd to see if Star was around. Instead he saw a group of rowdy people passing around a paper bag and taking sips from it. He’d have to warn Jackie about them later, there was no way she wanted that to go on in her house.

His thirst caught up to him he decided to skirt around the crowd and go for the punch, if someone hadn’t spiked it by now. One quick sniff told him that, yup, it was spiked. Instead he opted for an unopened bottle of water for the time being.

“Heyyy, there, Mr. Diasssz,” a sloppy girl bumped into him from behind.

“Watch where you’re going – _Star_?” Marco was shocked to see the girl now practically draping herself over him was none other than Star Butterfly. He could smell the punch on her breath.

“Star, did you drink the punch?” He asked, steadying her.

She giggled, “Of _course_ , Marco! What _else_ would I drink?”

“There was alcohol in that! Someone spiked it!”

She paused, narrowing her eyes at him as she tried to process this statement, “Oh well! To late to change it now! C’mon, Marco, let’s go dance!”

Star grabbed his arms and before he could get out a word of protest they were outside on the dance floor.

Marco began to protest, trying to pull her from the dance floor. She was reluctant, and continued to dance for a couple songs, but eventually the levels of alcohol in her blood stream caught up to her and she let him guide her to the grassy back yard where a swing was hung from a large oak tree, partially hidden from sight of the patio by a few large bushes.

“Here, have a seat,” Marco offered, easing Star into the hanging chair and taking a seat next to her, “How’re you feeling?”

She made a disgusted face, “I was feeling totally great but now I’m feeling totally not.”

“If you feel like you’re gonna throw up let me know,” He checked the time on his phone, “It’s nearly ten, if I need to call my parents to come pick us up, I can.”

Star shook her head, “No, no, I’m having fun. Just… need to rest a bit.” Her head bobbed and fell onto Marco’s shoulder.

He saw her shiver slightly, and after checking to see if anyone was watching, he put an arm around her bare shoulders. This caused her to relax her weight against him, and for Marco to blush deeply.

“This isn’t really how I thought this evening would go,” He said quietly, “I had this expectation that I’d spend the whole evening with Jackie, or that if things didn’t work with her I’d see another beautiful girl that I’d dance with all night but every single girl I’ve talked to has been such a major disappointment! I mean, not Jackie, she’s still totally cool even though she’s not interested in me. I’ve had more girls hit on me tonight than in my entire life but they all just bore me to tears and I can’t figure out why!”

Marco sighed in exasperation, “I just… don’t know what I was expecting.” He looked down at the girl leaning on him now and saw that her breathing had slowed and that she’d fallen asleep, “This is the most fun I’ve had all night.”

And that’s when it hit him: Star had set his expectations. He had spent so much time with her, a magical princess from another dimension, that he expected every normal girl to be upbeat and bright and fun and reckless and an absolutely beautiful mess. It was a silly expectation, to be fair, but he supposed that it made sense. Star was the closest female friend he’d ever had.

He pulled her a little closer at this realization.

Moments later, he heard a group of rowdy boys walking around the other sides on the bushes and heard the offensive sounds of Oskar’s keytar, which rousted Star from her nap. Marco was afraid that she’d want to get up and go talk to him but thankfully she stayed put for the time being.

“…so what’d’ya say, Oskar? You gonna take her out or what?” a voice said.

Oskar let out an apathetic noise that barely meant yes or no.

“Ah, c’mon, man! She’s hot stuff,” someone else commented.

“I guess so,” Oskar responded.

“Yeah, man, I saw her earlier, she’s wasted as hell! Drank a ton of the punch.”

“I bet she’d put out – she’s clueless about Earth stuff, she’d believe anything you told her!”

Marco’s grip on Star’s shoulder tightened.

“I dunno, she’s kind of annoying,” Oskar said.

They all laughed, “Yeah, but it’s not like you’ve got to call her tomorrow!” More laughter.

Marco was so angry that it took him a second to register that a few tears had fallen on his shirt.

“Star...” he started to say.

“I know exactly what they’re talking about.”

“Huh?”

She looked up at him, tears in her eyes, “I’m not an idiot, Marco.” She looked as if she was about to explode, and she stumbled up from her seat and pushed her way into the crowd.

“Star!” Marco tried to follow, but lost her among the jostling bodies.


	5. All the Pretty Girls Can't Measure to You

Marco spent four songs dancing among the crowd on the patio, trying to find Star while avoiding the group of girls that had been preying on him all night. Eventually, he managed to bump into Jackie.

“Jackie! Oh thank god, a familiar face. Have you seen Star? I’m really worried about her, she drank a lot of the punch –,”

Jackie's eyes suddenly darted above his head, “Marco, turn around!”

Marco turned to see what her gaze had fallen on and he saw Star, standing on the roof of Jackie’s house, wand in hand.

“STAR BUTTERFLY RULES!” A voice cheered from the crowd, and everyone joined in.

“Star!” Marco yelled up at her, “Get down from there! A fall from that height could lead to serious injury!”

Star looked him straight in the eye, “Screw that! I came out tonight to have _fun_ , and that’s exactly what I intend to do!” 

She spoke into her wand and it amplified her voice like a microphone, “ARE YOU PEOPLE READY TO PARTY?”

The crowd screamed in assent.

“I said… are you people… ready… TO _PARTY_?” She yelled again, blasting a spell into the sky that exploded into a rainbow of color and lights, and the music changed to match the tempo of the explosions.

In the midst of everyone cheering and screaming and being distracted by the lights in the sky, Star’s stance on the slanted roof wavered.

“STAR!” Marco yelled, as he struggled through the pulsing crowd, diving underneath her at the last second to break her fall to the patio. The weight of her falling into his arms brought him to his knees, and he cursed under his breath at the pain.

Star's were closed, but after a moment they fluttered open; a small smile spread on her face, “Nice catch, dude.”

Without responding, Marco turned to see that Jackie had followed and he looked to her with pleading eyes. 

"Follow me," She said, and Marco pushed himself to his feet and let Jackie lead him to her kitchen. Marco propped Star up on the counter.

Jackie passed him the water and that he opened and gave to Star, “Here, take small sips. Do you have any ginger ale?” He asked Jackie.

“Uh… let me check,” She walked over to the refrigerator and began searching.

“How ya doing, princess?” Marco asked she looked sleepily down at him.

“Better,” She smiled.

“I found a can of ginger ale and some pretzels,” Jackie offered, handing the can to Marco and setting a bowl of pretzels on the counter next to Star, “I’m going to finishing kicking out the jerk-offs that spiked my punched.”

Marco nodded and turned to Star, offering her the opened can of ginger ale which she took gratefully and began to take small sips from.

Even after having a few bites of the pretzels, though, she still remained silent. Her eyes were still red from tears and it looked as if the second wave was coming.

"Star? You doing alright?"  


She shook her head, "I really Stared this up tonight, Marco."

"There is no possible way that you could have known that Oskar was such an ass. That is completely not your fault. You also had no way of knowing that the punch was spiked - and... and to be honest," Marco wavered, looking away from her, "I should have been there for you. Or at least warned you. I guess you could say I 'Stared' up tonight, too."

She smiled a little bit, "I'm still disappointed in myself. I was so sure that I knew what I was doing that I didn't think at all. I feel like I made a fool of myself." Her face fell as she sipped from the bubbling can.

“Hey, don’t worry about that now,” he pushed her bangs out of her face, “I’m honestly just so glad you’re safe.”

Her smile returned momentarily, but quickly tears began to pool in her eyes again, “Hey Marco? Can you promise me to never talk about a girl the way those boys were talking about me? Because that wasn’t okay.”

Marco shook his head, “It wasn’t. And it took every ounce of self-control in my body not to go pound each and every one of their ugly, stupid faces into the ground. I promise that I will never say that kind of stuff ever. You deserve to be treated like the princess you are.”

Tears beginning to fall, she managed a grin, and tried to speak but the words caught in her throat. She slid down from the counter and fell right in front of Marco, only a few inches separating their bodies. Her hands reached out and gripped his shirt, and her head fell against his chest.

He placed his hands on her shoulders, “Why don’t we go home?”

She nodded, wiping tears onto his shirt and she pulled him into a tight hug, and he cherished this moment in which he could wrap his arms around her.

“Hey Marco! Star! Is she okay?” Ferguson called out, emerging from the crowd closely followed by Alfonzo.

“Hey, guys! Yeah, she’s gonna be fine. We’re probably going to bail now, though.” Marco responded, relaxing his grip on Star so she could take a few more sips of her ginger ale and grab a handful of pretzels for the road.

“I don’t blame you,” Alfonzo agreed, “We’re going to hang around a bit longer! We’ll fill you in if anything exciting happens.”

Marco laughed, “Sure thing! Thanks guys.”

As they disappeared, Marco looked down at Star, noticing briefly how much smaller she was than he at this close distance, “You ready to go?”

“Yeah.”

He led her out of the crowded house, making sure to wave goodbye to Jackie before he exited. Once outside, he took off his button down shirt and draped it over Star’s shoulders, leaving him in only the white undershirt.

This gesture surprised her, “Don’t you want your shirt?”

He shrugged, “I don’t really need it. That, and I wanted to make sure you were comfortable.”

She smiled and thanked him, putting her arms through the sleeves, “This thing is huge!”

The shoulder seams fell far past where they should on her arms, and even with the sleeves rolled up they came to the middle of her forearm.

“Ah, well, it’s gotta be big to account for all of my huge muscles!” Marco gloated, flexing in a goofy manner as they walked.

Star laughed, giving the first genuine smile she had in hours.

“Oh, hey, did you ever talk to Jackie?” She asked, “I saw you go after her but I was so caught up in the moment that I never asked how it went!”

Marco smiled sadly, “It won’t work between me and Jackie. But, I think that I’m okay with that.”

“Okay with it? You’ve been practically in love with her as long as I’ve known you! Even longer than that!”

“Well, who’s to say I haven’t fallen for someone else now?”

Star gasped, “A mystery girl? I must know who she is!” She threw away her empty can as they passed a public garbage can.

“Someone is feeling better!” He remarked, “But, no, you can’t know just yet. But I think you’ll be really surprised when you do find out.”

“Alright, Diaz, I’ll let it slide for tonight. First thing tomorrow, though, you better be ready for interrogation!” She was attempting to sound jokingly threatening, but her sleepy demeanor was too cute for Marco to see her as anything but adorable at the moment.

She swayed for a moment, and Marco grabbed her hand to steady her, “Whoa there! Take it easy, party animal. We’re almost home.”

They were quiet for the rest of the walk, hand in hand, Star occasionally leaning her head on his arm for support. Marco’s heart felt whole, and even though he was anxious about his newly discovered feelings, he was also excited. He had a new goal for the summer: confess to Star and hopefully have her fall in love with him.

In that moment, though, it was so easy to pretend that she was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I left it as a bit of a cliff hanger but with enough closure that I don't HAVE to write a sequel or whatever... If there is interest, though, I am not opposed to it!


End file.
